


Prompt: Winded

by Rangergirl3



Series: Whumptober 2019 [32]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Gen, Keith (Voltron) Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-18
Updated: 2020-05-18
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:42:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24246709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rangergirl3/pseuds/Rangergirl3
Summary: Keith is on a mission for the Blade of Marmora.
Relationships: Keith & The Blade of Marmora
Series: Whumptober 2019 [32]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1506101
Comments: 10
Kudos: 140





	Prompt: Winded

**Author's Note:**

> This has a fair amount of Keith whump, but also some humor right at the end. Thought it would be nice to change things up a bit as we near the end of Whumptober 2019. Enjoy.

Keith didn’t have to look down at his injury to know it was a bad one.

For one thing, his Blade’s uniform was already slick with blood. For another, he was having trouble keeping his balance. Finally, he was fairly certain that he would pass out in the next few moments.

Fortunately, he could choose to ignore all of that, and so he did.

Pidge probably would have told him that was a stupid idea, but she wasn’t here right now, so Keith chose to ignore her imagined advice on the basis of ‘screw it, I have to complete the mission.'

He concentrated on getting his breath back. It was difficult, given that his injury was bleeding heavily, and it was only a matter of moments before the ship’s automatic reset set in.

If that happened, all the air would escape from the cells, and the ship would drift, ghost-like,in the dead of space until a Galra commander came looking for it.

* * *

The mental image of hundreds of prisoners dying a horrible death acted as the catalyst for action.

Keith pushed himself away from the wall, staggered, and fell onto his hands and knees.

God, he was so tired.

The control panel was only a few yards away.All he had to do was activate the automatic release codes. Once the cell doors were open, the prisoners on this transport could set a course for the nearest Coalition planet.

An automated voice began counting down.

Every breath he took was borrowed time.

_Move, move, move._

Keith began to crawl. It wasn’t elegant, and it wasn’t easy, but he managed to cover the distance.

Then, it was a matter of standing up, to reach the bioprint scanner.

He tried, but almost passed out from the pain.

Standing wasn’t an option, then. But neither was losing counsciousness and letting hundreds of innocent people die.

Keith used the last remnants of his enduring stubbornness to kneel fully upright, reaching as high as he could.

It almost worked.

The tips of his fingers found the edge of the bioprint scanner, but it wouldn’t complete the scan without his palm print.

More than anything else, Keith wanted to rest, to just let him awareness fade away into the darkness, but instead, he forced himself to stand, screaming as he did so.

He almost toppled to the floor again, but managed to catch himself.

Time was running out.

He raised a shaky hand, hoping that the blood coating his fingertips and palm wouldn’t delay the scan. The countdown was almost complete. He could hear screaming from the cells down the hallway.

The prisoners were terrified.

They didn’t want to die.

When the bio-scan ended, the automatic voice stopped counting.

“Countdown, ended. Termination, interrupted. Please input new coordinates, or the process will reinitiate.”

Keith swore under his breath as he slowly punched in the coordinates for Olkarion. Thankfully, for once, the system recognized the destination and tracked its own way there, saving him the trouble of inputting a specific route.

Okay, okay, now...he just...had to...open the...cells...and that would...cancel the airlock initiative...

He reached towards the console, fighting the dizziness that made his vision blur and sway.

He managed to initiate the cell release program just before the blackness enveloped him.

* * *

Noises, filtered through the darkness, reached him some time later.

Whoever was talking seemed to be arguing among themselves.

_Move him now, or later._

Keith wondered who they were talking about.

Some kind of light was flashing on and off, near his face. Keith wished it would stop. His head ached, and his side - god, it hurt. He felt cold and sick and dizzy, all at once.

Pressure was applied to the injury, and that searing pain catapulted Keith back into semi-awareness. He groaned and tried to kick out, to make whoever was hurting him stop, but there were hands holding him in place.

“Easy, easy now,” someone said. “We’re just trying to stop the bleeding.”

Keith turned his head towards the speaker, but at the motion, another spike of raw pain stabbed into his guts, and he let out another groan before he could stop himself. He forced himself to open his eyes, and what he saw confused him.

There were people around him.

How had...

Oh.

The cell doors must have opened just after he had passed out.

There were so many people. He wondered if Sam or Matt had once been on this ship.

“...is...there...” he broke off, coughing.

The person nearest to him, a huge man with bear like features frowned in concern.

“We’re finding some more bandages,” he said;. “Just - lie still. Most of your blood is on the floor.”

“ _And_ the wall,” piped in another nearby alien, who had a shimmering, almost pearl-like quality to their android features. “ _And_ the corridor, and the -“

“Yes, thank you, Learen,” the bear-like man growled. “I’m quite certain he’s well aware of that fact.”

Keith felt a sleepy half-smile cross his face.

Hah.

Yeah, yeah he was.

**Author's Note:**

> Oh my gosh! Only one prompt left to go! :D :D 
> 
> (Yes I know we're almost through May 2020 but oh my gosh I am so happy! :D)
> 
> Please know that your comments and kudos make my day! :D <3
> 
> I'm on Tumblr - come say hi.


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